1 GW Solar Power Project Announced in China, Timetable Unknown

Everyone likes a new world record, but this next one is a bit like saying you've run a 3-minute mile and when when queried about where and when you did it, you respond "sometime in the next five years." In that light, two Chinese firms have announced that they will be collaborating on building what will eventually (as in, someday, but we're not telling) be a 1 GW solar power project in the Qaidam Basin. Here are the details:30 MW Will Be Built At FirstThe companies involved are the China Technology Development Group Corp. and the Qinghai New Energy Group. Initial investment in the project will be slightly under $150 million and will build a 30 MW solar power plant using both crystalline silicon and thin-film solar panels. The construction of this phase of the project will begin later this year, with the plan being to expand it to a full gigawatt of power capacity. No timetable or cost projection was given for future expansion.

Project Would Be Double Next Largest Solar Power FacilityIf completed, and some other project doesn't overtake it in size, this facility will be double the size of the largest photovoltaic project currently on the boards, a 550 MW thin-film project to be built in California by Optisolar.

More on China's solar power expansion: Three weeks ago, another large Chinese solar power project—166 MW in Yunnan Province—was announced. To date, most of China's solar industry has concentrated on manufacturing for export, but it seems that domestic installation is finally beginning to grow.